(Host) Vermont craftspeople and state officials hope to establish a network of officially sanctioned state craft centers.

VPR's Ross Sneyd reports.

(Sneyd) For more than a decade, the only official Vermont State Craft Center has been Frog Hollow, which once boasted a string of outlets but now is down to just one store.

Two more veteran stores dedicated to the work of Vermont artisans are about to pick up the state's seal of approval.

Governor Jim Douglas will inaugurate The Gallery at the Vault in Springfield and the Artisans' Hand in Montpelier into the select club of Vermont State Craft Centers.

David Mace of the Vermont Commerce Agency serves on the panel that makes the designation.

(Mace) "They're both excellent examples of a high quality, Vermont-centered craft center. Both galleries use a lot of local artists, have a very thorough review process for allowing artists to show their work at the galleries. And both are committed to promoting the Vermont craftspeople who sell their products there."

(Sneyd) Mace says galleries selling high-quality arts and crafts are an important cultural and commercial part of the state's business landscape.

Giving an official state sanction to the best, he says, will help to promote the entire industry. Mace says the goal is to have a statewide network of Vermont State Craft Center galleries.

For VPR News, I'm Ross Sneyd.